Congress seems to have two legislative speeds: inertia in the face of an oncoming fiscal disaster, or ugly, last-minute scrambles to ram through sham legislation that often exacerbates already fraught situations.
California High-Speed Rail: Way Off Track
In November 2008, California voters approved Proposition 1A, a $9.95 billion bond measure to fund part of the state’s share of the proposed high-speed rail line from Anaheim to San Francisco. The bond was approved by a narrow margin of 52.7 percent of the 12.6 million votes. The railway was supposed to be up and running by 2020, and the total cost was estimated by the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) at $33 billion. While it was easy to see why some balked at the price estimate, one could also understand its support, at least among potential beneficiaries. After all, taxpayers outside the rail corridor, both in California and across the country, were supposed to pick up $6.8 billion, or one-quarter of the railway’s $27 billion initial segment.
Two Different Worlds: Public vs. Private Sector Compensation
Despite the popular belief that federal employees are underpaid public servants, the data tells a very different story. When all of the factors that affect compensation are accounted for, there is significant evidence that federal employees make considerably more than their private sector counterparts.
As GM’s Stock Price Drops, Auto Bailout Cost Goes Up
Wastewatcher, December, 2011
Sequestration Option Discussed After Super Committee Fails to Deliver
Since the Budget Control Act (BCA) was signed into law on August 2, 2011, all eyes had been on the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction. With a looming $15 trillion national debt, weak economy and failing financial markets, this “Super Committee” was tasked with finding $1.5 trillion in savings over 10 years. A bipartisan group of 12 representatives and senators were chosen for the job, including Reps. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.), Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Fred Upton (R-Mich.), Dave Camp (R-Mich.), and Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), and Senators Max Baucus (D-Mont.), John Kerry (D-Mass.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Pat Toomey (R-Pa.).
On Fannie, Freddie, and the FHA, Two Steps Back
Taxpayers are both in awe of and enraged by the schizophrenic behavior of government officials and lawmakers when it comes to taking action on the nation’s thorniest public policy conundrums. Over and over, taxpayers hear the rhetoric emanating from Washington urging opportune and commonsense action to solve a host of public policy issues and then watch, with horror, as the administration and members of Congress fail to turn that lofty rhetoric into forward-moving action; instead, they often make matters even worse. The evolution of reform efforts vis-a-vis the nation’s housing giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) is a perfect case study in that phenomenon.
MEADS Test “Successful,” Cost and Purpose Uncertain
In an apparent last-ditch attempt to secure funding for the troubled Medium Extended Air Defense System (MEADS) program, MEADS International, the primary contractor comprised of Lockheed Martin and MBDA, conducted a flight test at the White Sands Missile Range on November 17, 2011. According to a press release, the test “demonstrated an unprecedented over-the-shoulder launch of the MSE [missile segment enhancement] missile against a simulated target attacking from behind.” Even though the U.S. and Germany have already indicated that they do not intend to undertake the acquisition phase of MEADS, funding has been approved for two flight tests. An intercept flight test is scheduled for the end of 2012. It is unclear how much these tests will cost.
GAO Skewers United Launch Alliance Contract Plans
The Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) program began in 1995 and was designed to allow the Department of Defense (DOD) access to space with the intention of reducing the cost of satellite launches by at least 25 percent while striving for up to 50 percent. Four contractors were initially approved to compete for the contract, but two EELVs were eventually selected: Boeing’s Delta IV and Lockheed Martin’s Atlas V.
Another Failing Federal Loan Program
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Electrification Administration (REA) program began during the New Deal Era of the 1930’s. The program’s primary goal was to promote rural electrification to farmers and residents in out of the way communities where, due to the high cost borne by utility providers, such investments were not considered feasible. By 1981, 98.7 percent of these homes and businesses received electricity and 95 percent received telephone service. Rather than declaring victory and closing its doors, REA was transformed into the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), which expanded to provide loans for broadband communications to underserved areas of the country. Through the RUS program, the USDA acts as a credit agency that assists rural electric and telecommunications utilities obtaining financing, as well as administers nationwide water and waste loan and grant programs that are intended to improve the quality of life and promote economic development in rural America.
Using Broadband Spectrum Auctions to Reduce the Deficit
As the White House, Congress and particularly the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction look for ways to reduce spending and enhance revenues, close scrutiny is being given to both the allocation of broadband spectrum and the use of voluntary spectrum auctions to raise revenue for deficit reduction.